


I Know you

by WhatIsExistence



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Bisexual Isabelle, Canon Queer Character, Canon Queer Relationship, Demiwoman Maia, Did you know that pansexual simon lewis is the second tag that pops up when you type in pansexual?, F/F, F/M, Gen, I don't know how to do tags, I think that's beautiful, I'm most likely posting this after midnight, If Simon ever gets to be in this he's totally pan, M/M, Magnus and Isabelle are best friends, Maia's a badass, Multi, Non-binary Maia Roberts, Non-binary character, Nonbinary Character, Other, Pansexual Character, Pansexual Clary, Queer Character, Trans Character, Trans Female Character, Trans Max, does this count as a coffee shop au?, fight me, he and Clary can be pan besties, non binary character, non-binary isabelle lightwood, probably not, queer maia, sleep is for the weak
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-23
Updated: 2020-08-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:08:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 6,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22859767
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhatIsExistence/pseuds/WhatIsExistence
Summary: At a cafe, Isabelle stumbles across a face that she hasn't seen for three years and can't help but fall in love with Clary Fairchild all over again. Only Clary doesn't remember a thing.Set post ending/season 3b, two years after the one year later
Relationships: Alec Lightwood & Isabelle Lightwood, Clary Fray/Isabelle Lightwood/Maia Roberts, Magnus Bane & Isabelle Lightwood, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Kudos: 12





	1. Chapter One: A Familiar Face

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, this is my first fic, I hope you enjoy it. Criticism and feedback it's welcome as long as it's not just an excuse to be a jerk. If I think that any warnings apply, I'll put them in the beginning notes. Thanks so much for reading!

Isabelle walked into the cafe, sitting down at a table outside. For once, it was a lovely day in New York, hot but not unbearably so, the cool breeze not freezing, just cold enough to be refreshing, and a few stray clouds drifting through the sky. And Isabelle had the day off. She internally cackled at the memory of walking into her brother’s office to drop off some paperwork this morning, him bemoaning the fact that Magnus got the day off while he had to waste the day attending tedious board meetings. She’d grinned evilly, informing him with fake-innocence that she, in fact, had the day off as well, and was free to do whatever she pleased after she’d dropped off this paperwork. Alec’s reaction had been priceless.

“Hi, can I get you anything?” A waiter asked. Isabelle looked up, opening her mouth to order, but freezing when she saw who was standing before her. It couldn’t be.   
And yet, it was. That shockingly vibrant orange hair was unmistakable, tied up in a bun, a few stray curls framing the face that had haunted all of them for the past three years. She realized that she’d been staring for nearly a minute, overwhelmed by the memories.

“Sorry, I’m just not used to my waiters being this beautiful,” Isabelle flirted to cover up the hurricane of emotions erupting within her. Clary tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she ducked her head. Isabelle was sure that she was blushing underneath the heavy layer of makeup.

“Can I get a mochaccino, please?” Isabelle requested, desperate to get Clary away from her so she could process all of this.

“Of course, takeaway or have here?”

Isabelle paused. She had been planning on having breakfast here, but maybe it would be better if she grabbed her coffee and left before she did something stupid.   
But then she glanced back up at Clary, that infectious smile, slender fingers tapping on her clipboard, and she understood why Jace had snuck out night after night to watch her.

“I’ll put it down as have here.” Clary smiled at her, writing it down. “It’s not every day that I get a customer as beautiful as you.” Clary winked before walking away with a spring in her step. Now it was Isabelle’s turn to be blushing underneath her makeup. The last thing she’d expected was for Clary to flirt back.


	2. Chapter Two: Isabelle Makes A Mistake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isabelle goes back to the cafe like the dumbass she is.

Isabelle told herself that she’d avoid that cafe, that she’d never go back. She'd told herself that it was a one-time thing, a small moment of weakness that she’d allowed herself, but it was over and it was never going to happen again. But not even a week later, on her way back to the institute after hunting a demon all night, she found herself approaching the cafe. Managing to convince herself that she was just going to pop in to get some coffee to go, then she’d be gone, and Clary probably wasn’t working at the moment anyway, she walked in. Clary was behind the counter. Isabelle froze in the doorway. Clary was scrolling through her phone, looking bored out of her mind and yawning, no one else in the store. When the door closed, both of them jumped, the sound seeming far too loud in the silence. Clary smiled when she saw who was there, and Isabelle couldn’t help but smile as well. She walked over to the counter, perusing the menu so she wouldn’t have to look at Clary like she so desperately wanted to do.

“You’re back,” Clary said, breaking the silence. Isabelle finally looked at her, willing herself to be cool. She was being ridiculous, it wasn’t like she was thirteen and talking to her crush, she was a grown woman who was no stranger to these kinds of things. And yet, the way Clary was looking at her made all of her knowledge of flirting fly straight out of her head. Not that she should be flirting anyway. Remembering that, she cleared her throat and wiped the smile off of her face.

“Can I have a latte to go, please?”

“Of course you can,” Clary said, making Isabelle her coffee. When Isabelle reached for the cup, Clary pulled it back out of her reach.

“Wait,” Clary said, holding up a finger. “Are you going to come back again?”

“I don’t know,” Confused, Isabelle replied. Dissatisfied with her answer, Clary handed Isabelle her coffee.

“Don’t be a stranger, okay?” Clary said.

“But I am a stranger,” Isabelle reminded her. Clary smiled cheekily and Isabelle couldn’t help but copy her.

“Then maybe we should do something about that,” Clary said.


	3. Chapter Three: I'd give this a title, but it's too short for that, so you get this mess instead

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's basically just Clary's name a bunch of times. Don't say I didn't warn ya.

Isabelle went back to the cafe seven more times in the next few weeks. She told herself that it was just because they had good coffee, but she knew that was a load of bullshit. It was because of Clary. Clary, who had been there each time she’d gone. Clary, who had leaned over the counter or table flirtatiously. Clary, who had tucked Isabelle’s hair behind her ear the fourth time that she’d found herself there. Clary, who’s finger would linger on Isabelle’s when she gave her her coffee or plate. Clary, the one person on Earth that Isabelle should be avoiding at all costs.


	4. Chapter Four (Though, let's be honest, did Chapter Three even count?)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isabelle and Clary go on a date. I know, that progressed fast. As you can tell, I suck at writing slow burn.

The eighth time that Isabelle went there, it was a day much like the one when she’d first come to the cafe. So perfect that Isabelle almost didn't believe that it wasn't a dream. When Clary returned with Isabelle’s coffee, she told her that it was on the house.

“I- what? I’m sorry, but I can’t accept that.” Isabelle protested, but she couldn’t deny the warm, fuzzy feeling in her gut. The kind that made her want to accept Clary’s kindness and ask her if she wanted to sit with her, hold her hand maybe- no. No, she couldn’t do that. She shouldn’t even be here. None of them could talk to Clary, let alone ask her on a date. She’d done far too much already. She should never have come back. But the way Clary slid the cup towards her and told her “But of course you can,” made all of her reasons to leave take a back seat.

“Thank you,” Isabelle said, allowing herself a moment to appreciate this. She’d never thought that she’d see Clary again, and now, here she was. She admitted, when she’d first met Clary, she’d had a little crush on her. Maybe more than a little one. Okay, much more than a little one. But due to their circumstances, she’d always known that that would never be possible. She’d thought that she’d long ago managed to rid herself of those feelings for Clary, and yet, sitting here, Clary standing with her back to the sun, the light forming a halo around her like she was an angel, it all came rushing back.

“I should get going,” Reluctantly, Clary said, though she made no move to leave. It was apparent that neither of them wanted that.

“I’m sorry, this is really weird, but I feel like I know you, somehow. Have we met before?” Clary asked.

“No, we haven’t,” Isabelle lied.

“Huh. That’s really weird because I feel like I should know you.”

“Maybe it’s a sign that you should get to know me?” Isabelle suggested, knowing full well that this was a mistake. But the problem was, it didn’t feel like a mistake.

“Yeah, maybe I should,” Clary said nervously, ducking her head and looking at the table as she said the next part. “Umm, my shift ends in twenty minutes. And, I know this amazing ice cream place just a few blocks away. Would you like to…?”

“I would love to,” Isabelle answered her unspoken question.

“Great,” Clary said, her shy smile so fucking beautiful that, for a moment, Isabelle forgot to breathe. Clary half walked half skipped away and Isabelle was in half a mind to pinch herself to make sure that she wasn’t dreaming. Maybe a warlock had cast a spell on her. But when Clary walked over to her in her out of work clothes - an off the shoulder dress that stopped just past her knees - twenty minutes later and offered Isabelle her hand, it was as real as anything. What was even more real was how Clary didn’t let go of her hand after she’d helped her up, instead adjusting her grip so that their fingers were interlaced with each other. She caught Isabelle staring at their hands.

“Sorry, is this not okay?” She asked, beginning to let go.

“No! No, not at all,” Isabelle said, catching her slipping fingers and repositioning their hands so that once again, they were holding the hands of each other. “It’s just, it’s not every day that a stunning girl asks me to have ice cream with her.”

“Stunning?” Clary laughed. “Look who’s talking.” She made a show of running her eyes up and down Isabelle’s body in admiration.

“Okay, you need to stop, you’re going to make me blush so much that you’ll be able to see it through my makeup!” Isabelle joked. Clary’s smile faltered.

“I’m sorry, I’m not usually this forward.”  
“No, don’t be! That was a joke, I really don’t mind. In fact, this is probably one of the best dates I’ve ever been on.”

“Oh, so this is a date?” Clary questioned slyly.

“I don’t know, is it?” Isabelle grinned.

“If it’s a date, does that mean that I get your number?”

“Oh, well, we’ll just have to see how this date goes.”

“At least tell me your name?”

“By the Angel, you don’t even know my name.” Isabelle realized.

“Yeah, I know, it’s hard to believe. I feel like I really do know you. Maybe I did, in a past life.” Clary chuckled. Isabelle almost laughed at the irony of how Clary had just guessed the truth and didn’t even know it.

“My name’s Isabelle.” She said instead.

“Isabelle? An elegant name for an elegant woman. My name’s Clary, by the way. Though you probably already knew that, name tag and all.”

Isabelle couldn’t wipe the smile off of her face, as hard as she tried.

“So, how far away is your ice cream place?” Isabelle asked.

“Just up here,” Clary directed. It was just a small cart, an old woman behind it, two rows of cartons, twelve in total, underneath the glass top of the cart.

“Clary, my favorite customer.” The server greeted.

“Hey, Michelle,” Clary said. “Can I have a scoop of spearmint and a scoop of coconut?”

Clary turned to Isabelle.

“What do you want?”

“I’ll take one scoop of chocolate raspberry, please.”

The woman made them their ice creams, both Clary and Isabelle reaching for their wallets to pay.

“Oh, um,” Clary said, eyes glancing between their wallets.

“Split it?” Isabelle suggested.

“Yeah, let’s do that,” Clary agreed. Clary bid goodbye to the lady and they walked away.

“So, how is it?” Clary playfully interrogated.

“It’s… probably one of the best ice creams I’ve ever had.” Isabelle answered.

“One of?” Clary repeated in fake offense. “Okay, you have to take me to your top ice cream place one day then.”

“It’s a deal,” Isabelle said, before realizing that she’d just agreed to see Clary again.

“So, Isabelle, what do you do for a living?”

“I’m a jeweler,” Isabelle said, using the lie she’d used last time she’d dated a mundane.

“A jeweler? So you made that?” Clary motioned to her necklace.

“No actually, my brother in law did.”

“Brother in law? So, you have siblings?”

“Yeah, two older brothers, - one’s adopted - and one little sister.”

“You have an adopted brother?” Clary asked, slightly surprised, slightly intrigued.

“Yeah, we adopted him when he was ten. I was not impressed to have yet another boy in the family.”

“Don’t you have a little sister?”

Isabelle hesitated before she answered. “Yeah, but she was only 2 at the time.”

That, and Max might not want her to tell Clary that she was trans, and that it definitely wasn’t her place to out Max if she didn’t have her permission.

“Are all your siblings married?” Clary asked.

“My oldest brother is. My other brother hasn’t dated for a while. His last relationship…” Well, Clary was his last relationship, but it wasn’t like she could tell her that.

“Messy breakup?” Clary guessed.

“Yeah.”

“And your little sister, I’m guessing she’s young?”

“Yeah, she’s only fifteen, so nothing serious is happening regarding her love life, though she did have a girlfriend for the entirety of two whole weeks.”

“What? Two weeks?” Clary teased. “Man, I remember when two weeks was such a big deal. Now it’s all ‘So why don’t you have a boyfriend, Clary?’ ‘When are you getting married, Clary?’”

“Ugh, your parents are like that too?” Isabelle asked without thinking. Clary’s face fell.

“Actually, my parents are dead,” She said, trying to play it off like it was no big deal. Isabelle internally cursed herself. Why had she mentioned that? She’d gone to Jocelyn’s funeral and seen Valentine’s dead body with her own eyes.

“Yeah, my mom died three years ago in a fire and my dad’s never been around.” Clary shrugged, but Isabelle could hear the concealed pain in her voice.

“It’s not a big deal,” Clary lied. Isabelle could tell that she didn’t want to get into it, so she changed the topic.

“What do you do for work?”

“I’m an artist,” Clary replied, clearly relieved.

“You’re an artist? Can I see some of your work?” Isabelle requested.

“I actually have an exhibition on in a week, if you’d be interested in going?” Clary offered. Say no, say no, say no, Isabelle chanted in her head.

“It would be my pleasure,” Isabelle found herself saying. “What’s the date, location, and how formal should I dress?”

“Well, if you're going, then it might be a good idea if we exchanged numbers…?”

As Isabelle passed Clary her phone and typed her own number into Clary’s, she knew that this was going to come around to bite her in the ass. This was so, so wrong. The last thing Clary needed was to get involved with the Shadow World again. But as she stared at Clary’s name in her phone late that night while in bed, she couldn’t bring herself to feel guilty about it.


	5. Chapter Five: Rain, Rain, Don't Go Away

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isabelle checks out Clary's art then they go to have dinner but the weather has other plans for them.

Isabelle walked into the art exhibition, searching for Clary. When she found the redhead, she made her way over to her.

“Clary, you look amazing,” She greeted, not lying when she said that Clary looked good. If anything, it had been an understatement. 

“Isabelle!”

The way Clary’s face lit up when she saw her made Isabelle want to kiss her then and there. 

“Come on,” Clary tugged her in the direction of some paintings. What she saw stole her breath right out of her lungs. Jace had told them that Clary’s repressed memories of the Shadow World had influenced her paintings, but this… There was a painting of a lake at night, a figure shrouded in blinding light. When Clary had made her wish that had saved Jace. Another one showed a wolf crouched down low in the darkness, artificial light reflecting off its dark fur. The night Luke became alpha. Another one was simply a pair of golden cat eyes peering out of the darkness. 

“Where do you get your inspiration from?” Isabelle asked.

“Dreams,” Clary answered. “Sometimes, when I’m sleeping, these images will come to me. The funny thing is, I sort of feel like they’re real. Like these things really did happen. Which is ridiculous, right? Like, look at this one.”

Clary directed her to a painting of Lillith in her demonic form, crouching over the painting, making it look like you were looking at something that was really happening before you, trees and a starlit sky peeking out in between her wings, a glowing ball of blue light floating over to one of her outstretched claws. 

“See? It could never happen. It's ridiculous.”

“It’s not ridiculous,” Isabelle said. “Dreams have a way of fooling all of us. And I have to say, these paintings are really good, Clary.”

“Yeah, these are a few of my more vivid paintings. Most of them are just blurry images, more feelings than anything. The weirdest ones are my abstract paintings.”

“Do you have any of those here?” Isabelle asked.

“No, just ones like these.”

Isabelle nodded. After the exhibition was over, they went to get dinner.

“Do you know any good places?” Clary asked as they walked out. 

“Yeah, my brother and his husband have gone to basically every restaurant in the city, so I know which ones are good because they never stop raving about them. What are you in the mood for?”

“Seafood,” Clary answered after a moment. Isabelle got out her phone, looking up directions.

“Okay, we have to catch the subway. There’s one leaving in five minutes, we can make it if we run.”

Of course, they arrived just as the subway was departing.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Isabelle groaned.

“How far away is it? Could we walk?” Clary suggested.

“Yeah, that’s a good idea.”

Five minutes after they’d started walking, it began to rain, interrupting Clary’s recounting of the prank war she’d been in her first year of art school. It came on all of a sudden, no warning or even a light drizzle to indicate that they needed to get undercover. The two women ran for the nearest cover, their hair already plastered to their heads, clothes soaked. As Clary took her next step, she slipped, Isabelle’s hands darting out to catch her. With her arms wrapped around Clary’s back, she pulled her in, one of Clary’s arms darting out to wrap around Isabelle’s neck to stabilize herself. Only one of Clary’s feet was touching the ground, Isabelle leaning over her, Clary completely reliant on Isabelle to stop her from toppling to the ground. Their noses were brushing, Clary’s breath warm on Isabelle’s frozen face. She didn’t even notice the rain anymore, consumed by the proximity of Clary. Clary’s other hand drifted to Isabelle’s waist, running a hand up her side. 

“My princess,” Clary smiled, leaning up to kiss Isabelle. It only lasted for a second, really just a peck, but it still made Isabelle’s heart race unhealthily fast. Clary got to her feet, removing her hands from Isabelle, who hurriedly snapped back into reality to help Clary to her feet. It seemed that the two had remembered that it was raining, and they ran into the nearest store, which just so happened to be a coffee shop. Drenched, they rung out their dresses and hair just outside the door for a minute, wiping away as much water as possible. Neither of them had had the foresight to bring jackets, so they were both shivering. Clary’s mascara was running, and sure enough, when Isabelle checked herself in the reflection of the glass, her eyeliner and mascara were all over her face.

“You look like a raccoon,” Clary giggled.

“And you look like you belong on a bad reality tv show,” Isabelle teased, looping her arm through Clary’s and walking in. They each grabbed a muffin and Clary ordered some caffeine-free tea. The burning liquid scalded their throats but after the freezing rain, that and the almost oppressive heat of the shop was sorely needed. Once the starving ladies had eaten half of their muffins, they finally slowed down enough to talk.

“This was not how I had expected this night to go,” Clary commented in between mouthfuls.

“You and me both,” Isabelle agreed.

“Hey, can I request something?” Clary asked.

“Of course,” Isabelle answered.

“Isabelle, can we be honest with each other? I mean, in this relationship?”

Isabelle nodded. “That sounds like a very good idea. Far too many of my relationships have ended badly because we couldn’t master the alien art of communication.”

“Yeah, some of it still eludes me.”

“Speaking of this relationship, what is this? What are we?” Isabelle asked butterflies in her stomach. You’d think after all the relationships she’d been in, she wouldn’t be so nervous to hear the answer.

“What would you like us to be?” Clary asked.

“Girlfriends,” Isabelle said. She didn’t even have to consider it. It was all she’d been able to think about all week.

“I’d like that,” Clary said softly. “My girlfriend, Isabelle.”

They ate and drank their tea in silence for a while, until Isabelle spoke up.

“I can’t believe we got trapped in a coffee shop while it’s raining. This is such a cliche.”

“I know, right?” Clary agreed.

“And how you slipped and I caught you? That’s like something out of a movie!” Isabelle agreed with a laugh.

“How did you catch me, anyway? I mean, your heels are even taller than mine and you were so fast, how did you not slip or something?”

“I have a lot of practice,” Isabelle said mysteriously.

“Oh, really?” Clary said in playful disbelief, sipping her tea as she raised a single eyebrow. “You catch a lot of girls in the rain and kiss them, then?”

“A fair few,” Isabelle teased. “What about you? Are you a professional damsel in distress?” 

“Excuse you, I will have you know that that was the first time that someone has caught me like that.”

“What, so your other partners just let you fall?” Isabelle joked. 

“Well, in my past relationships there hasn’t exactly been an opportunity for them to save me from acquainting myself with the sidewalk. I’ve only had two boyfriends and I think one of them lasted for, like, a day.” Clary laughed.

“I can do you one better, I once had a boyfriend for all of 40 minutes.”

“No!”

“Yes,” Isabelle said, both of them giggling as the deafening rain drowned out everything apart from each other.


	6. Chapter Six

Isabelle walked into the meeting, giving Alec and Magnus a hug before they each took their places for the meeting. It wasn’t about anything too important, just a triannual meeting to go over things. Isabelle’s phone went off, interrupting the conversation.

“Sorry,” She said, embarrassed as she checked it. It was from Clary. 

‘Do you want to come over to my place tonight?’

She quickly texted back. 

‘I would love to, but I’m in a meeting right now, text you later.’

She looked up from her phone to see everyone staring at her.

“Who was that?” Alec asked.

“No one, can we continue?”

“If you’re evading the question then chances are it is someone. Who are they?”

“Can’t we do this later?” Izzy requested, exasperated.

“Was that your boyfriend?” Magnus asked, grinning. 

“No, it definitely wasn’t my boyfriend,” Isabelle said, glaring at the pair. “And aren’t we in the middle of an important meeting?”

“Hey, you were the one who answered their phone,” Alec said, putting his hands up in surrender. Isabelle rolled her eyes. Sometimes she hated her brother.


	7. Chapter Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll go into this more at the end, but basically I just wanted to thank you for reading my story and for leaving kudos if you did. On to the story, cause that's what y'all clicked on this for.

Isabelle knocked on the address that Clary had given her, her girlfriend answering the door. Clary was wearing jeans stained with markers and charcoal and paint, her black shirt sporting the same marks. Her orange hair was tied up in a ponytail, her face clean of makeup.

“Isabelle,” She greeted, pulling the older girl in for a hug.

“Clary, it’s good to see you again.”

“You too,” Clary stepped aside so Isabelle could come in, closing the door behind her. Isabelle took in the apartment. Hanging from one of the walls was a pristine white sheet, covering the ground as well, all the furniture pushed aside to create a space in the middle of the room. More sheets hung on either side of it, a small table that looked like it had seen better days and far too much paint for its own good by the opening to the makeshift room. On it was a packet of balloons and small cans of paints as well as thumbtacks and darts. 

“What’s this?” Isabelle asked as Clary moved towards the table. A white tarp was underneath the table, covering the floor.

“I thought that we could do some painting,” Clary said. 

“There’re no paintbrushes,” Isabelle pointed out as she joined Clary at the table.

“Who says that we need paintbrushes?” Clary grinned. She picked up a balloon. “The idea is that we fill the balloons with paint and stick them to the wall,” She pointed to the thick paper sheet hanging from the wall and trailing along the ground. “And then you throw darts at them and create a painting.”

And so the two spent the next half an hour filling the balloons with paint. 

“Do you do a lot of art like this?” Isabelle asked, scooping spoonfuls of silver paint into her balloon. They’d agreed on using silvers and cold shades. Clary shrugged, concentrating on not spilling the emerald paint all over her hands.

“It depends. I usually do more traditional paintings, with brushes and such. I’d like to experiment more, but between art school and having to sell my paintings, I don’t get a lot of time to try new things. It’s how I make my money, how I pay my bills and afford things, so if an experiment doesn’t go well… not good,” Clary finished. “But I try to make time every now and then for personal projects, like this one. What about you?”

“What about me?” Isabelle asked, pinning the full balloon to the wall in a random position.

“You’re a jeweler, do you ever make things just for yourself?”

“Not really,” Isabelle said, trying to stick as close to the truth as possible by using the parallels between being a jeweler and her old job as the weapons master and new job as the head of the institute. “I don’t make as much jewelry anymore, more overseeing. My mum’s retired and my dad’s letting me and my oldest brother take the lead in the family business.”

“What are your sibling’s names?”

“The oldest is Alec and his husband’s called Magnus. Jace is the next oldest and Max is my little sister.”

Clary nodded. 

“What are they like?” She asked. Isabelle considered this for a moment. 

“Jace is… arrogant. But protective. He cares a lot about people though he can be… overbearing, sometimes. He can seem like a jerk, a bit self-possessed, but once you get to know him he’s a big softie.”

Clary snorted at this.

“Alec’s the leader, he’s a bit blunt but he cares a lot about people. Max is a total nerd, and she hates being underestimated. She’s a big lover of pop culture.”

Clary nodded as the two finished off the last of the balloons.

“Now for the fun part,” Clary said with a grin. “Do you want to go first?”

“Sure,” Isabelle said, picking up one of the darts.

“On a scale of one to ten, how good are you at dart-throwing?” Clary asked. Isabelle thought of her shadowhunter training and her lessons with Alec. 

“I’m pretty good,” She said, trying - and failing - to keep the grin off of her face.

“I’m going to assume from that face that by ‘pretty good’, you mean you’re a champion dart thrower or something.”

Isabelle laughed, pulling her arm back and choosing her target. Needless to say, she hit her target dead-center, bursting the balloon. Clary hid her impressment with disbelief and competitiveness, and soon they were in a contest. Isabelle easily won by a large amount, much to the chagrin of Clary, though the redhead was a lot better than Isabelle had expected. Good enough that Isabelle was certain that at least some of her shadowhunter training had stuck. At the end, the paper sheet was covered in green, blue, purple, white and silver paint. 

“This is so unfair. How are you so good?” Clary said in fake despair.

“A girls gotta keep some secrets,” Isabelle grinned.

“Sure, sure, whatever you say.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I just wanted to go over again how much it means to me that you took the time out of your day to read my story. I hope that you enjoyed it and that you want to keep reading, but if not, thank you for reading as much as you did, even if all you read was the title before you decided that this wasn't for you. Once again, y'all are amazing and I hope that you had as much fun reading this as I did writing it!
> 
> On another note, I originally wrote this as longer but decided to break this up into two parts because... well because I wanted to. I'll post the second part either tomorrow or later today. I'd love to hear what you think about the story in the comments, but no pressure. As always, criticism and feedback is welcome! I hope you've had/have a great day, and once again, thanks for reading!


	8. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: There's a mild makeout scene, just kissing, though Isabelle and Clary both lose their shirts. It only goes on for a few sentences though. If you want to skip this chapter, a summary will be at the endnotes and at the beginning of the next chapter. I'll also include a marker where the making out starts and stops so you can skip it while still reading the rest of the story.
> 
> I don't usually write makeout scenes and am asexual and aromantic, so I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing when it comes to writing attraction. I hope it's not too awkward/bad and that the attraction side of it is somewhat realistic. There won't be many of these scenes in the story, probably no more after this, so if that's why you clicked don this fic, you should probably go find another one because there is a very high chance that this is all you're going to get.
> 
> Enjoy the fic!

Isabelle helped Clary clean up the things on the table, taking down the makeshift walls but leaving the sheet where it was so the paint could dry. Clary offered her a drink, which she accepted, sitting down on the couch where Clary soon joined her. Isabelle just stared at Clary, unsure where to take the conversation. Clary had taken her hair out, the fiery locks spilling over her shoulders. Isabelle studied her face, her sparkling green eyes, the irises bursting out from her pupil. She’d never noticed the color of her eyes before. She usually wasn’t close enough to people’s faces to see them properly. Her orange lashes were hard to see and the streak of baby blue paint on her cheek was dried and cracking. There was a pimple on her chin, dark circles underneath her eyes and a scratch on her jaw that was half-healed. Her lips were dry and chapped, and Isabelle had the urge to put lip balm on her. Then she was thinking about kissing her.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Clary whispered. Isabelle’s eyes trailed up to meet hers.

“I’ll tell you for a dollar,” She said with a smile, keeping her voice at the same volume. It seemed wrong to speak louder, like this was a sacred moment and disturbing the silence would bring down a hammer of fiery vengeance on them. Clary stood up, taking Isabelle’s hands and pulling her to her feet as well, leading her through the apartment to her bedroom. Isabelle’s voice caught in her throat and when Clary dropped her hands she didn’t know what to do. Then Clary walked over to the dresser and pulled out her wallet and Isabelle had no idea where this was going. She knew exactly where she wanted it to go, though. And yet, for what must have been the first time in her life, she had no idea how to make it go in that direction. Clary walked back over to her, handing her a dollar.

“A dollar for your thoughts,” She said triumphantly. Isabelle took the dollar, folding it up and putting it in her pocket. She struggled to speak, and when she finally found her voice, she didn’t know what to say.

“I want to kiss you,” She eventually blurted out.

**(This is where the making out starts)**

Her heart was racing as Clary walked towards her, stopping just in front of her, so close that their chests bumped into each other. She put an arm around Isabelle’s neck, leaning forward slightly, her breath warm on Isabelle’s face.

“Then kiss me,” She whispered. Isabelle didn’t need any more prompting than that. Their lips crashed together like the very force of gravity was pulling them towards each other. Soon, Clary was on the bed, Isabelle in her lap straddling her. Her hands slipped under Clary’s shirt, trailing up her back. She pulled away just long enough to get both of their shirts off. Clary’s hands were in Isabelle’s hair. Clary tilted her head back as Isabelle moved away from Clary’s mouth to her neck. Then her phone blared, a short but sharp alarm, impossible to ignore once she’d recognized the tone. Isabelle pulled away, groaning in annoyance as she fumbled for her phone.

“Ignore it,” Clary whispered, kissing the underside of Isabelle’s jaw.

“Believe me, I wish I could. But it’s important,” She replied, glancing at the shadowhunters logo on her screen over Clary’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, I really have to go,”

**(This is where the making out stops)**

She gently pushed Clary back, standing up and pulling her shirt back on. When Clary walked over and wrapped her arms around her waist and said “Please stay? For me?” with the cutest, most imploring puppy dog eyes Isabelle had ever seen, she had almost lost her resolve. Isabelle shook her head, stepping away, Clary’s arms dropping to her sides.

“I’ll see you later?” Isabelle asked, possibilities of Clary being pissed that she’d had to go and never talking to her again creeping into her head.

“Of course,” Clary replied, sounding confused as to why that was even a question. “Tomorrow night?” She suggested, a seductive grin returning. “My place? We could finish what we started?” Her fingertips trailed down Isabelle’s neck, and by the Angel, why did she have to go?

“That would be amazing,” Isabelle said, breathless. She just stared into Clary’s eyes for a moment before forcing herself to turn away, Clary walking her to the door.

“Night Isabelle,” Clary said, giving her a kiss on the cheek before closing the door. And by the Angel, if this was anything less than a greater demon invading New York, then she was going to kill a bitch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! So, the summary: Clary and Izzy clean up the things and have something to drink. Clary's face is described in detail and Isabelle starts thinking about kissing Clary. Clary asks Isabelle what she's thinking about and Isabelle says that she'll tell her for a dollar. They then go into Clary's room where Clary gives Isabelle a dollar. Iz tells Clary that she wants to kiss her and Clary tells her to do that. They make out until they're interrupted by an alert from the institute and Isabelle has to go. They reschedule for tomorrow night. That's basically it. Not much happened.


	9. Chapter Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of y'all who skipped the last chapter, here's the summary. Clary and Izzy clean up the things they used for their art and then they have something to drink. Clary's face is described in detail and Isabelle starts thinking about kissing Clary. Clary asks Isabelle what she's thinking about and Isabelle says that she'll tell her for a dollar. They then go into Clary's room where Clary gives Isabelle a dollar. Iz tells Clary that she wants to kiss her and Clary tells her to do that. They make out until they're interrupted by an alert from the institute and Isabelle has to go. They reschedule for tomorrow night. That's basically it. Not much happened.
> 
> Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Isabelle walked into the institute, Jace and Simon and- “Alec?” She asked, confused as to why the inquisitor was huddled around a monitor at her institute.  
“Hey Izzy,” He greeted, the three looking up.  
“What are you doing here?” She asked as she joined them. “I thought you didn’t arrive until tomorrow?”  
Alec was visiting all of the main institutes to see how they were run, but he wasn’t due until tomorrow.  
“I came early, thought I could get some quality time with my family in,” He said.  
“Magnus is having a gossip session with his friends and kicked him out to spend time with his friends, only he doesn’t have any apart from us,” Jace translated.  
“You didn’t have to say it,” Alec said, annoyed.  
“Well, what’s wrong?” Isabelle asked, slightly impatient.  
“Is something wrong?” Simon asked, confused by her tone. “Did we interrupt something?”  
“She was probably just making out with her boyfriend,” Alec said innocently.  
“Boyfriend?” Jace asked, suspiciously. “What boyfriend? And why is this the first that I’m hearing about this?”  
“Because it’s none of your business, and I don’t have a boyfriend,” Isabelle said. “Can we get back to work?”  
“If you don’t have a boyfriend then where did that hickey on your neck come from?” Alec asked.  
“What hickey?” She asked alarmed, craning her neck around to try to see it.  
“None, you don’t have one, but now I know that you were doing something that would allow you to get one,” Alec said superiorly. She glared at him.  
“What is your problem? You’ve never cared about my dating life before, why now?”  
“Because you were never secretive about it before,” Alec answered.  
“Just tell me what we’re dealing with,” She said, exasperated. She’d interrupted her date with Clary for this? She’d never admit that she secretly enjoyed her siblings teasing though. Although she wouldn’t have picked it over Clary.  
“A minor demon is attacking some mundanes in Brooklyn, no casualties but three in the hospital,” Simon reported.  
“And do you need me to handle this?”  
“Did you have somewhere to be?” Alec asked. “I thought you said that you didn’t have a boyfriend.”  
“Drop it, Alec,” She said, her dead-serious tone causing the three boys to share a worried look.  
“Are you okay?” Alec asked. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I was actually upsetting you.”  
“It’s fine, you weren’t. Let’s just go. We have a demon to kill, after all.”

She had to cancel on Clary the next night for an impromptu and mandatory family dinner. Even Max was coming though, so it’s not like she could refuse to go. And so at 6 o clock sharp, she was walking into her mother’s apartment instead of Clary’s. Max lept out of her chair to hug Isabelle the moment she walked through the door.  
“Hey Max, how are you?” She laughed as the teenager released her. “Wow, you are getting tall.”  
“I’m good, how are you?”  
“Isabelle has a boyfriend,” Jace said, hugging Maryse.  
“I do not!” Isabelle protested.  
“You have a boyfriend?” Max exclaimed, grinning.  
“I- oh whatever,” Isabelle said, giving up. Her family were a bunch of dicks.


	10. Chapter Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Surprise, I'm not dead! Also, damn, I wrote this months ago and now I'm cringing at my old writing. I'm not the best judge of the quality of my own work though, so hopefully it's not too bad!  
> Warning: this contains mentions of homophobia and growing up in a non-accepting family.

Isabelle had to wait a week until she could find time to see Clary again, though they texted practically non-stop. When she finally got to walk meet Clary for lunch at the cafe where she worked on one of her breaks, it was a relief.

“Hey,” Clary greeted, hugging her.

“What, no kiss?” Isabelle teased.

They sat down, Clary handing her an already ordered coffee.

“How did you know what my favorite coffee is?” Isabelle asked.

“You forget, I used to be your waiter and you ordered this almost every time.”

“Yeah, it’s just, I didn’t expect you to remember,” Isabelle admitted, touched. “I’ve actually only ever dated two people properly. The majority of my relationships haven’t exactly left much room for dates and such.”

“Huh. Well, I hope that they’ll be plenty of room for dates and such in this relationship,” Clary said.

“Count on it,” Isabelle said as they shared a smile. After a moment she said, “By the Angel, I needed this.”

“How so?” Clary inquired.

“My brothers have convinced themselves that I have a boyfriend. They’ve been relentlessly teasing me about it. And, it’s not even the teasing itself that bothers me, you know? I know I shouldn’t be pissed, but it’s just, after 24 years of pretending to be straight, I’m getting a bit sick of it. Of having to lie and close off an entire part of my life. Of myself. Rationally, I know that it’s not their fault. We live in a heteronormitive society, and I’ve never given them any reason to think that I’m anything but straight. But it doesn’t stop…”

“Stop you from feeling annoyed and alone. From being mad at the world, just a little,” Clary finished.

“Yeah,” And suddenly she felt like crying. She rubbed her eyes, willing herself not to. “It’s just, I hate it. It’s not fair. Why do I have to deal with all this and Jace doesn’t?”

“No, it’s not fair,” Clary agreed, reaching over to grasp her hand.

“I just feel so alone.”

“I know. Believe me, I know what that feels like. But I need you to know that you are not alone. For starters, you have me. I’m here for you Isabelle.”

And then she really was crying. Clary moved her chair around so she could hug her, and Isabelle, despite her best efforts, was crying into Clary’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” She said.

“Shh, it’s okay. It’s okay, you don’t need to be sorry.”

“I can’t believe I’m crying, and in public no less,” Isabelle said, wiping her eyes.

“Don’t worry, practically no one else is here. I can’t believe you haven’t cried about this before,” Clary said with a small laugh. “How long have you been bottling this up again?”

“Nearly eleven years,” Isabelle said, laughing sadly through the tears.

“Oh Isabelle,” Clary said as she started crying again.

By the time they arrived back at Clary’s apartment, Isabelle had calmed down.

“Izz, can I ask you something?” Clary asked.

“Go for it,” She replied.

“Why don’t you come out to your family? Not that you have to at all, or that you need to justify it. I just wondered if there was a particular reason.”

Isabelle considered the question as they walked into Clary’s apartment. “I guess it’s because I’ve always had the intention of never coming out. You see, my family… I grew up in a ‘don’t ask and under any circumstances, never ever tell’ environment. It’s hard to shake that. I don’t want to lose anyone, Clary” She said. 

"Yeah... I know all about not wanting to lose people," Clary said with a sigh.


End file.
